Stem Cell Interview

I recently read a very interesting interview with Lawrence Goldstein, a leading stem cell researcher and advocate. He wrote 'Stem Cells for Dummies', a book I think a lot of people could stand to read.

One of President Obama's first moves as president was to reverse Dubya's inane decision to restrict federal funding of stem cells to just existing stem cell lines. Now, funding restrictions have loosened, but along with the available funds come serious regulations over the ethical nature of the stem cells. Out of the 21 existing lines, only 2 have qualified for more funds, because of the difficulty in proving that these cells were derived by ethical means. Oh, the wonders of red tape.

QUESTION: Do you have pet peeves regarding how the public perceives stem cell research?

ANSWER: I have a few.

The first is the myth that human embryonic stem cells come from aborted fetuses. This is nonsense. It’s just not true. These stem cells come from frozen blastocysts (a very early embryo consisting of 150-300 cells) not used in in-vitro fertilization procedures. These cells are going to be discarded, no matter what. End of story. There’s no abortion involved.

Second, people sometimes think stem cell research is just one thing. In fact, the research covers lots of different kinds of stem cells with different properties related to different diseases. No one kind of stem cell can substitute for another. What makes ESCs so special is they can make many kinds of stem cells that we can’t otherwise get in reasonable qualities.

Third, there’s the oft-repeated myth that adult stem cells can do everything. This is completely undocumented and misleading. People have to remember that a collection of press releases doesn’t establish a fact. Just because one or two scientists think something may be true doesn’t necessarily define it as an independently reproducible, consistent, useful finding that forms a correct foundation.

Fourth and most dangerous are the pronouncements by some people that adult stem cells can cure any disease. This has resulted in a proliferation of clinics across the border and around the world that will, for a price, offer unproven therapies. People go to them for help without enough information necessarily to know what they’re getting. These clinics are unregulated. There’s no accountability to make sure they tell the truth. The treatments are so hyped that people are putting their lives at risk. We’re seeing cases of people who have gone to these clinics and come back with real damage.